While spelled alike, this name is pronounced very differently in each of the two languages: Spanish [xoˈse]; Portuguese [ʒuˈzɛ] (or [ʒoˈzɛ]).
In medieval England the name was occasionally borne by women but more commonly by men; the variant surname Jose is local to Devon and Cornwall.
The sounds, from a total of seven sibilants once shared by medieval Ibero-Romance languages, were partly preserved in Catalan, Galician, and Occitan, and have survived integrally in Mirandese and in the dialects of northern Portugal.
In those regions of north-western Spain where the Galician and Asturian languages are spoken, the name is spelt Xosé and pronounced [ʃoˈse].
The Portuguese phonology developed originally from thirteenth-century Galician-Portuguese, having a number of speakers worldwide that is currently larger than French, Italian and German.
The masculine form is current as a given name, or as short for Joseph as is the case of French politician José Bové.
The same masculine form is also commonly used as part of feminine name composites, as is the case of French athlete Marie-José Pérec.
[6] (Popular belief attributes the origin of Pepe to the abbreviation of pater putativus, P.P., recalling the role of Saint Joseph in predominantly Catholic Spanish-speaking countries.)